Steelers quarterback bullish on Cassel

OK, if Matt Cassel pulls another 400-yard rabbit out of his hat this weekend, he officially goes into the Magicians Hall of Fame.

Wonder if they have ugly yellow blazers, too.

If you’ve been paying any attention to the NFL this season you know that Cassel is the league’s newest four-year/overnight sensation. As such, his fan club is growing exponentially.

This week’s member spotlight: Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, who made a pretty big splash himself as a rookie in 2004, only to have his playoff hopes dashed by a certain defending Super Bowl champion.

Big Ben, who trails Cassel in TD passes (13 to 11), yards (2,615 to 2,233) and QB rating (90.5 to 80.5) – but is tied in agonizing losses to the Colts (one each) – apparently can’t get enough of Cassel’s clipboard-to-riches story.

“I love it,” Roethlisberger said on a conference call with the New England media this week. “I’ve always taken the underdog role, and you always have a special spot in your heart for quarterbacks because you know what they go through. When he came in early on, people started talking bad about him. They started talking about, ‘Oh, boy, how much we miss Tom (Brady)’ – and I’m sure they do miss Tom because he’s something special.

“But, for (Cassel) to put up the numbers and to win football games, I’ve really enjoyed it just for the fact that people thought he couldn’t do it and he’s been doing it.”

Of course, if we’re playing “A Few of My Favorite Things” with Roethlisberger, his own defense would have to make the list, too.

Ask him what he likes in particular about Pittsburgh’s D – which seems as equipped as any to extinguish the raging Cassel inferno – and Roethlisberger says, “Pretty much everything: to see them fly around, to see them confuse (offenses), to see them blitz, to see them stop the run. Coach (Mike Tomlin) always says, ‘Give them a blade of grass, they’ll defend it,’ and sometimes that’s true. You give them a short field and they find a way to hold (the opposing offense) to three points.”

His QB rating is higher than Brady had in any of his first three seasons as a starter;

He’s got a better completion percentage (66.3) than Brady had in any season other than 2007.

On the other hand, it’s hard not to be awed by what the Steelers defense has accomplished:

They’re ranked No. 1 in rushing yards, passing yards and total yards and are bidding to become the first team since the 1991 Eagles to win that triple crown;

They’ve held each of their first 11 opponents under 300 yards, forging the third-longest such streak to start a season since the 1970 merger;

They’re also No. 1 in points allowed, No. 1 in the red zone, No. 2 in sacks per pass play and No. 9 on third down.

Bottom line – it’s hard not to think that this is going to be one heck of a showdown at Gillette Stadium come late Sunday afternoon.

“It is going to be quite a challenge for us this week,” Cassel said, and you could imagine James Harrison, Troy Polamalu, Ike Taylor and any other Pittsburgh defensive star saying the same thing – and meaning it.

That right there shows you how far Cassel has come – from the Keep It Simple, Stupid plan of that Week 2 visit to the Meadowlands (just don’t lose the game, kid) to the Let ‘Er Rip philosophy in Miami last week (um, could you win it for us, please?).

Cassel said it was a “lot of fun” to fire 94 combined passes (60 completions) against the Jets and Dolphins. And, in case you’re wondering, no, his arm is not sore. “I only threw the ball 32 times in college,” he said with a smile. “I had a lot of rest.”

Along the way he’s won over a skeptical fan base, converting the “We gotta get a better backup!” hue and cry of August to the “Trade Brady” chatter of November. Sure, the latter comes only from the lunatic fringe, but still.

“I can’t speculate on any of that stuff,” Cassel said, “but it is the funny part of sports and the great part of sports also, that as a player you can be counted out one minute and the next minute you perform well. You can change the future and change people’s perspective of you based on how you perform.

“That is why we love sports, because it’s always so unpredictable.”

Roethlisberger, for one, predicts that Cassel will be a one-year wonder with the Patriots. Great story, sure, he said, but “I don’t think Tom is really worried about his job.”

In the meantime, though, the Steelers have to worry about Cassel – and vice versa.

Whoever thought it would be shaping up as a fair fight?

Eric McHugh may be reached at emchugh@ledger.com.

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